The Dark Knight Rises

Sir Nunnos reviews…The Dark Knight Rises

Just ask Lady Nunnos, she’ll tell you – I’ve never been one for rubber suits and masks. I can’t imagine they’d be anything but hot and chafe-tastic, but I have to admit that they have their place. And I’d certainly never tell anyone else that their lifestyle choices are wrong. Heck, I’m a walking anachronism, I have no right to do so!

Enter, stage left, Mr Bruce Wayne as portrayed once again by the broody and scowling Christian Bale (whose layover teenage angst I have adored ever since Equilibrium). Once more in his rubberised bat costume, Mr Bale et al have provided us with a final instalment of the Dark Knight films filled with thrills, spills, explosions and a surprising amount of chiropractic shenanigans.

Returning cast-members from the previous films in this series greet us with more of the same quality we’ve now come to expect: the by-now customarily outstanding emotive performance from Sir Michael Caine as Alfred and the convincingly smug paternal condescension from Morgan Freeman as Mr Fox.

I had my doubts about Anne Hathaway as an un-named “cat woman”, but she pulled off the role with panache, style and a not inconsiderable amount of feminine appeal. Marion Cotillard, as the other love interest, Miranda, was convincing if somewhat overshadowed by Hathaway’s screen presence.

3^rd Rock from the Sun’s Joseph Gordon-Levitt continues to please the eyes. Here, as a detective battling the ineptitude of the police force, he was a little let down by the scripting rather than any fault of his own, though there is a delicious twist at the end of the film.

If you’ll permit me a little British solidarity, I’ve always had a soft spot for Tom Hardy. He’s a fantastically committed actor and I’ve followed his work for a long while. While, like a good many critics, I was not keen on Nolan’s decision reluctance to clear up the muffled vocalisations of Hardy’s character, Bane, I found that the presentation of the villain was both imposing and, strangely, just a little pitiful. The mark of a well-rounded characterisation, given he spends the whole film in a face-obscuring mask and acts mainly with his eyes.

The film remained watchable despite running to two and three-quarter hours…though I’ll be avoiding the rubber garb myself.

Sir Nunnos rates this movie: 85%